If the sight of Lloyd Loom brings to mind perfectly mown lawns and tea on the terrace, you are not alone.
Unsurprisingly, for a type of furniture that was produced in vast quantities from the 1920s to the middle of the 20th century, Lloyd Loom has a distinct ‘summer at Downton’ feel about it.
Bringing with it an air of elegance and comfort, leading interior design house Neptune have leaned into this staple for a customisable summer feel, both inside and outside the home.
It was Lloyd Loom’s sturdiness that made it such a success when it was first created in America by Marshall Burns Lloyd as an alternative to natural cane.
Made by tightly twisting kraft paper into continuous, twine-like lengths, weaving these into panels reinforced with steel, then attaching these to bentwood frames, Lloyd Loom has all the texture of cane, but it will not snap or bend.
And crucially, because the paper is twisted into such long lengths, there is no possibility of snagging your clothes like there is with short pieces of cane.
You might have come across a vintage Lloyd Loom laundry basket before. They were — justly — very popular.
‘Lloyd Loom’ refers to the material and manufacturing technique, but has also come to be synonymous with the style of furniture as well.
The curved back chair, with its continuous line from back to armrests, is especially iconic – and a design that Neptune referenced their own Chatto armchair and matching sofa.
Its wraparound shape, slim legs and finishing details, like the plait along the edge, are all quintessential of Lloyd Loom furniture’s refined, yet comfortable, personality.
Lloyd Loom lends itself to a garden — or garden room — setting. Even though it is painted, its wicker-like texture is completely at home here, and in fact the painted element means that it works both outside and in, so you can change it around in winter and summer.
It is relatively lightweight too — even in the Chatto collection where bentwood frames are swapped for weatherproof aluminium to make this movement with the seasons easier.
It has a classic air but that is not to say you cannot bring Lloyd Loom into a contemporary home, or into rooms beyond the garden’s fringes.
It is a wonderfully versatile material that can be fashioned into almost any shape and type of design.
And because it is painted, you can not only personalise it to your space and style now, but also repaint it in the future.
Neptune’s Montague collection takes the texture and refinement of Lloyd Loom and updates it with more minimal shapes and straighter lines (although still with the occasional curve ).
From the barstools and dining chairs to the new headboard and blanket box, depending on your choice of colour, these can be barely-there pieces all about texture or they can make a stronger statement that is, nevertheless, softened by the light and shadow in the weave.
Between texture and a choice of colour, these historically rooted pieces will quietly add depth and a subtle sense of drama, wherever you choose to place them.
